Used Golf Balls v New

[shepski]

I have been very happy buying golf balls from Lost Golf Balls. Com and the like. I have found that even on 3 star balls they balance up well and are not out of round. And they look good too even the three star. The Five star used balls look perfect and balance up perfectly too. Honestly its been so long since I bought the new version of the balls I get from them, presently Bridgestone Tour B RX and B X, that I have no objective point of comparison. Has anyone tried to compare the two repetitively and what did you think. Thanks.

[Tanner25]

Lost balls seems to get favorable reviews. I prefer to by new. Just buy prior gen versions or stock up during the holidays.

[LeftyMatt24]

I used to play a lot of balls from lost golf balls. I would echo they look great, then I read an article about the potential they could be water logged, so I strayed away. I went with Vice last year and enjoy playing a new ball. Also got tp5x new practice for 12 a dozen.

[cristphoto]

Water balls are always a risk. Here is part of an article from Golf Digest from several years ago explaining some of the effects from water exposure. I hope this is acceptable for attachment.

 

The Effect of Water on a Golf Ball

Despite the myriad of esoteric names created by golf ball

manufacturers, the most common materials used to make

a golf ball cover are either thermoplastic ionomers (Iotek‚

– Exxon product, Surlyn‚ – Dupont product) or thermoset

polyurethane. These materials are susceptible to moisture

uptake during the manufacturing process and must be kept

in humidity-controlled areas. Polymeric materials, depending

upon their molecular structure, take up water in varying

degrees. Structure affects both the solubility and diffusion

coefficients, which determine overall water permeability.

Temperature also affects both diffusion and solubility

coefficients.

The two final layers or coatings of golf ball construction

include a primer and a “protective” gloss coating.

The primer, in most cases, is water-borne polyurethane

and the final layer of protective gloss coat is generally a

two-part solvent-based polyurethane. The protective coating

is designed to be water permeable. When a golf ball is struck,

it creates micro-cracks, allowing for increased

passage of humidity/water. To prevent macro cracking or

bubbling of the protective gloss coat, the coating must be

designed to allow water to flow freely. The core or “engine”

of a golf ball is made of polybutadiene rubber with

proprietary fillers. The polybutadiene rubber is mixed with

fillers, generally inorganic minerals, and is used to increase

the overall weight and strength of the core. Although the

polybutadiene rubber is hydrophobic, water will channel

through the polymer and be attracted to the filler-polymer

interface. The reduction in coupling between the filler and

the rubber will decrease the core’s ability to rebound or its

COR (Coefficient of Restitution) – which translates into a

loss of distance.

 

How Water Affects a Golf Ball

It takes 12 hours for water to penetrate the cover

and finds its way to the core.

Water channels its way into the core utilizing the fillers as

a “highway” and is attracted to the filler-polymer interface.

The reduction in coupling between the filler and the rubber

will decrease the core‘s ability to rebound or its COR.

For a two-piece ball, being in the water typically makes the ball harder in terms of

compression, and it also slows down the coefficient of restitution [the ability of the ball

to regain its roundness after impact], and that makes it fly shorter. For the two-piece ball,

the carry and roll after eight days in the water was 244.9 yards compared with 250.7 yards

for the new two-piece balls [a loss of 5.8 yards in distance after only 8 days.]

As reprinted from Golf Digest Magazine

[Golf64]

Can't do it! Always new! If I can't afford box of balls, shouldn't be playing. I would buy cheaper new 2 piece vs. 'used' ProV type balls.

[Olde Maroon]

I've bought dozens from golfballsdirect.com with great results. I typically do 5-star, because I have a bit of OCD. I used to wait for a good sale to jump in. Now, however, I can find new balls from last gen for just a bit more in most cases. BST, clearance sales, etc. offer similar pricing and buying used means you are using last gen anyways. I don't think either is the "correct" choice, especially since some brands offer better last gen pricing than others.

[bobdogg17]

I can't speak enough about lostgolfballs.com Everything I've ordered through them has been great

[bobdogg17]

I'm not good enough to honestly tell the difference between a 2019 ball and a 2020 ball. I just purchased 96 Titleist AVX balls that basically look brand new and came out to be about $22/dozen instead of $45 in the store. I love them

[shepski]

Thanks to all of you that have taken the time to respond and stay safe and well during these trying times.

[bluedot]

I've never been quite sure how to process the articles I've read about golf balls and water, which seems to me to be the key question in buying used golf balls.

One the one hand, the articles SEEM "objective", but the other thing to consider is that golf ball companies are MAJOR advertisers with the magazines that print those articles. In the very tough climate for print advertising revenues, I don't think it would be realistic to expect the magazines to say that a ball that had been in the water would be just fine.

A buddy with a PHD in Chemistry believes that golf balls would NOT take on water unless you are talking about really extended periods of time. But he's a lab guy, and points out that he hasn't run experiments to verify that.

So the bottom line for me is that I just don't know the answer, which means that I don't buy used golf balls.

[Kentendo]

My friends and I have talked about this subject several times. We have all bought from lostgolfballs and liked the results. We only bought the best grade/quality. We all felt like maybe 1 or 2 of the dozen did not perform as well as the others, but we are not pro-level golfers. It could have been and probably was our imagination.

I have not purchased used balls for a while because I can find new balls in the same price range. I buy "Practice" versions of TP5 and ProV1 and they play just fine for me and are new. I see no reason to buy used unless you are buying ammo can quantities.